I have to admit, I love watching the powerful black and white blurs fly through an agility course, but it is refreshing to see a variety of breeds compete, which doesn’t happen very often at the top levels of competition.

USDAA Cynosport World Games: 31 of 32 dogs in the 22” and 26” height groups in the Steeplechase Finals and 38 of 40 dogs in the Grand Prix Finals were Border Collies.

Do Border Collies’ super canine genes give them an unfair advantage?Getting a Border Collie isn’t an instant ticket to success.As individuals, each dog, regardless of breed, has their own challenges, strengths, and weaknesses.Nonetheless, it’s apparent that Border Collies dominate the sport.

My Sheltie, Nemo, measures a whopping 19.5” at the withers and has to compete against the big dogs.He’ll never keep up with the Border Collies in terms of speed and we only place if it’s a technical course where faster dogs knock bars or run off course. Still, I can’t imagine not having the thrill of competing alongside these amazing dogs.

And while it’s not common, I’d like to think that non-Border Collies can be competitive, even at the highest levels.At the USDAA’s Cynosport World Games this year, that one non-Border Collie in Steeplechase Finals, a Belgian Tervuren, ended up winning the championship.

When it comes down to it, I’m conflicted.I do think that having more opportunities to showcase non-Border Collies would encourage more people to participate in competition, but on the other hand if a team is talented enough to make it to the top levels, don’t they deserve to be there, regardless of breed?

What do you think about creating more opportunities for non-Border Collies in dog sports?